A Soldier's Life
by katelynmauntel
Summary: Charlie Weasley was Hermione Granger's first love. They had been happy together until they were torn apart by a mission from the Order of Phoenix. Five years later, Hermione has agreed to a mission: Marry Draco Malfoy. What happens when Charlie shows up before the wedding? Torn between love and duty, the fate of the world rests on her shoulders.


**Prologue**

The world as I knew it was in danger. I remember the first time I found out that I had magic; it was unlike anything I had ever experienced. Finally, I felt like I belonged somewhere. When I found out that I had been accepted to Hogwarts, I read all my textbooks ahead of time. I had been told two months before school was scheduled to start and I was dying of impatience. So to pass the time, I discovered more about the world I was going to be a part of.

However, when I arrived at school, I was a misfit. I knew too much about the magical world and everyone else just wanted to have fun. I remember how upset I felt when I realized that I didn't fit in. The first time someone called me a mudblood, I went off and cried. The sadness and hurt I felt turned into determination. If people didn't think I belonged in this world, I was going to show them that they were wrong. I was going to be a brilliant witch.

If only I had known that the word mudblood was going to change everything. A dark wizard named Lord Voldemort came back into power and was threatening the existence of people like me. He wanted to cleanse the world of mudbloods, people who had nonmagical parents. Now, we were in danger and on the verge of fighting a war.

I was part of a secret society called the Order of the Phoenix. Dark wizards and witches were everywhere, so we couldn't trust the government to do their job of protecting us. We had to take matters into our own hands. We tried to gather intelligence on the other side and try to stop them from assassinating the wizards and witches that stood in their way. We also were searching for a way to defeat Lord Voldemort once and for all.

The war had been going on for a few years now and morale was at an all time low. For some reason, the Death Eaters were always one step ahead of us. It was beyond frustrating. Although our world had become a dark and scary place, there was good that had come out of it. I fell in love with my best friend's older brother. Charlie Weasley was a man I had never expected to fall in love with. He was quite a bit older than me, absolutely hated reading, and was extremely good looking. That was why I was shocked when I found out that he loved me too despite my uncontrollable frizzy hair, lack of style, and inexperience with anything remotely romantic.

We hid our relationship, because we were scared that his family and the Order would oppose it. It was frowned upon to date a fellow agent, because it could cloud your judgment during a mission. I hadn't understood why they were so adamant on it until Charlie received his first mission. My role within the order was to research things because I was too young to be sent out in the field and Charlie had only been sent to deliver messages or pick up deliveries. Life was as perfect as it could get during a war and so when the other shoe decided to drop, I was completely unprepared. Charlie hadn't told me about the mission, I had to find out about it from his family members. That's why I was so angry and determined to find Charlie. After looking everywhere and not having any success, I sent him a letter telling him to meet on the rooftop of my apartment building.

I waited for an hour before he finally showed up. He didn't look like anything was amiss and I felt my anger boil especially when he kissed me in greeting.

"So when were you going to tell me about the mission?" I asked him angrily.

Charlie took a step back in surprise, "How did you find out about that?"

"Your brother Ron told me. How could you try to hide this from me?" I asked feeling not only angry but hurt.

"I didn't tell you because I knew that it would upset you. We knew this was going to happen eventually, it's just happening sooner rather than later," he explained frustrated, "I leave tonight."

"For how long?" I asked fearing his answer.

"I don't know. I could be there for weeks, months, or even years," Charlie answered, "Before you ask me, no I can't tell you what I'm going to be doing. It's top secret."

"Please don't accept it," I said suddenly, trying to grab Charlie scared he was going to disappear before my eyes.

He pulled away, "I need to do this. I joined this war because of witches and wizards like you. I need to do my part in ensuring your safety and survival. I'd never be able to forgive myself if anything happened to you."

"I can take care of myself, why can't you see that? I need you in my life. If you leave, there's a chance that you might not come back and I can't even begin to imagine what that would be like. It would hurt too much," I said trying to convince him that he couldn't leave me no matter how honorable he thought it would be.

"You would be hurt, but at least you would be alive," he said starting to walk away.

My heart was slowly breaking, "I love you. Please don't leave me."

He walked back up to me and grabbed my face with his hand bringing my face so close that if I went on my tippy toes I would be able to kiss him. His hazel eyes were beautiful with the city lights reflecting off of them. His gaze was so intense that if I didn't know him, I would look away. I returned his stare refusing to back down. This frustrating man was the love of my life and it physically hurt me to think of my life without him.

"God damn it Hermione, don't you see that I love you too? I'm sorry, but this is for the best," he said with a tone of finality.

Before I could respond, the lips that I had been craving to kiss suddenly were against mine. My hands went to pull his face even closer to mine. I loved him and hated him in that moment. I knew that he had made up his mind and there was no changing it. I tried to put all my feelings into the kiss. His tongue met mine and before I knew it my legs were wrapped around his waist and my back was against a wall. I felt like someone was holding my heart in a clenched fist. He was leaving and this could be the last moment that I would have with him. Although his body was flushed against mine, I still felt as if there was too much distance between us. I needed this man more than I would like to admit. I wanted to memorize this moment so that I could always remember it.

Suddenly I felt my feet hit the ground and he stepped back.

"I'm sorry, but I need to take this mission," he whispered and I watched him walk away from me leaving me crying on the rooftop of my apartment.

That was the last time I saw Charlie Weasley.

**Hi Everyone! **

**So I've recently had this idea for a story, but I wasn't sure how much interest there would be so I decided to post a preview. If I receive positive feedback, I will start writing this story. If not, I will write something else. Remember that this is just a first draft. Please let me know if you see some potential in this :). **

**Thanks, Katie **


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